Extraordinary Times

Extraordinary Times 29: How Do I Know I Need Therapy?

It is natural and normal to experience anxiety and depression during a time like this. When faced with stressors as we are now, anxiety can help motivate us to problem-solve and seek solutions, while worry and fear about our health and our futures are normal.

Like everything, the question of when to seek therapy, relies upon the degree of our symptoms. It is time to seek help if you find that you are:

• Unable to perform daily life responsibilities 
• Abusing or over-using substances 
• Having thoughts of hopelessness and that life is no longer worth living
• Decreased appetite and inability/excessive sleep 

Free, on-line screeners to assess your symptoms will help determine whether to pursue therapy at this time. https://screening.mhanational.org/screening-tools

Extraordinary Times 28: When Will We Return to the Office for Therapy?

We cannot set a specific date for our return to face-to-face therapy yet.  It is still not recommended to meet in an enclosed space for as much time as a therapy session requires.  

Therapists and patients must feel safe to meet in person and if there is any doubt at all, we can always continue using telehealth services. 

Once we return to the office, all of the recommended safety and health precautions must be met in order to attend in-person sessions.  Birmingham Maple Clinic will provide all of our recommended safety precautions to you well in advance of returning to the clinic and we will do everything to provide a safe, healthy environment for your comfort and security.

Extraordinary Times 27: Mental Health Getting Worse During Quarantine

If you delay seeking mental health treatment help, symptoms may intensify and as the stressors intensify. Stressors that may intensify during quarantine may include:

• Underlying mental health issues prior to coronavirus
• Isolation and loneliness
• Financial Pressure
• Fears about job loss
• Family pressure and conflict

Mental health treatment is available through community mental health organizations as well as private clinics and therapists.

Free or low fee resources: 

Michigan Department of Health & Human Services https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs/0,5885,7-339-71547_2943_52115-203750–,00.html

Common Ground  https://commongroundhelps.org/

Easterseals Michigan https://www.easterseals.com/michigan/

Extraordinary Times 26: Use Meal Time to Share Feelings and Ideas

Families are spending much more time together now.  While this poses many challenges and struggles to find some independent space and tie for ourselves, there are also silver linings from our confined time together.  We have an opportunity to learn about each of our needs and to share them with those we live with or those we love.

Use mealtimes to communicate and share important feelings.

You will learn a lot about each other by asking each family member, or person with who you share a ‘virtual meal,’ to describe what might help you feel more comfortable and safer during the pandemic.  This gives each of us an opportunity to express our important, personal feelings and also helps others better understand what we fear and what we need.

Extraordinary Times 25: Anxiety vs. Optimism

Predicting the future is the underlying theme of both Anxiety and Optimism.  

Anxiety is a fearful, negative prediction of the future and Optimism is a hopeful, positive prediction of the future.  Both are predictions – with the opposite perspective.

How can we moderate and modify the negative, fearful predictions:

• Break down fearful thoughts into smaller parts.
• Think carefully about each “part” of the thought and identify the negative fear.  
• Think through the fear and identify what you can do to minimize the fear, or dispel the fear because it is unfounded.
• Think through every fearful part of the negative thought; challenging each part to find a solution for the fear or to dispel the part/s as unfounded or highly unlikely.

Extraordinary Times 24: Baby Steps for Ending Quarantine

Change is difficult for many of us and returning to work, as our communities gradually open up, as we deal with re-entry into society, how can we do this without emotional break-downs?

Try taking baby steps to get used to change. To gradually ‘re-enter:’

• Spend a bit more time outside than your usual 10-minute walks
• Try going to the grocery store (properly protected)
• Return to work for a few hours each week, then gradually increase time spent at the workplace (properly protected)
• Rehearse ways you will protect yourself in various settings and situations before going out
• Anticipate feeling intermittent surges of anxiety as you re-enter